


Long Away

by Sinnedearfather



Series: She Makes Me [2]
Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018), Queen (Band)
Genre: 1980s Era Queen (Band), Brianna May/Regina Taylor - Freeform, F/F, Genderswap, Parallel Universes, Smile (Band) Era, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:20:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23676754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sinnedearfather/pseuds/Sinnedearfather
Summary: Regina was having weird dreams after coming to London. Everything seemed unreal until she met the girl from her dreams in real life. She also did a bit of time and space travelling to another universe.
Relationships: Brian May/Roger Taylor
Series: She Makes Me [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1704838
Comments: 14
Kudos: 14





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I am here writing Smile!Fem!Maylor again because I love my baby girls so much T_T  
> Basically this story is another version of how Brianna and Regina got together during Smile era, but this time Regina would be doing some time and space travelling to a parallel universe, visiting fem!maylor from "She Makes Me" in the 1980s :D (That's right, this story is also a follow-up of their rock'n'roll dream!  
> Unlike "She Makes Me", I don't have a drafted outline for this story so let's see how this will turn out! This should be shorter than "She Makes Me" nevertheless :)

_She was having one of those dreams again._

_The room was very dark. Regina looked around only to see two blurry figures around the sofa with a table lamp switched on next to them. With the yellow dim light, Regina recognised the place – it was her home in Cornwall._

_Her other self was kneeling on the floor with the familiar brunette girl sitting on the sofa. Their voices were muffled as usual so Regina couldn’t really make out their conversation. The brunette girl’s head was hanging low and her speaking voice was wheezy, disturbed by a few hiccups._

_She was crying._

_Regina didn’t even know her name, but the sight of her crying almost brought the blonde girl to tears as well for no reason. Her body desired to take her hands in hers and tell her that everything would be fine because she was there to support her._

_Despite her inability, apparently her other self was realising what she had on her mind as she could see she raise her hand to caress the other girl’s cheek, assumingly wiping her tears away. Regina was relieved, yet the frustration of not knowing the reasons behind the tears of her angel lingered._

_The two continued to exchange a few words which Regina still couldn’t catch. Without warning, her other self suddenly stood up with her hand holding the other girl’s._

_“There you go, my girl. You won’t regret choosing me and your true self.”_

_For the first time in having these dreams, Regina could hear clearly of herself. It was so abrupt that it caught her by surprise. Her other self sounded so tender that Regina thought she had never ever been that soft-spoken before._

_The blonde girl felt a lump in her throat as her heart was throbbing with overwhelming emotions. What did she herself mean? “Choosing me and your true self”?_

Regina jerked awake and gulped a few hasty breaths with her chest rising up and down. She lay on her bed for another minute before slowly sitting herself up against the headboard. She poured herself a glass of water and drank it in one gulp.

She didn’t expect to be able to hear herself all of a sudden. Did that imply anything? Or it was just an accident? She was a science person and didn’t believe in religion at all. _Maybe psychology can help._ Regina made a mental note to herself to drop by the university’s library next time to borrow some related books.

After coming to London, Regina had been having weird dreams. Those dreams were always blurry with muffled voices and sounds. Although scattered, they were consistent in involving herself and a certain tall brunette-haired girl. Regina would always be an observer in her own dreams. Sometimes it would be herself hanging out in the library with the other girl. Sometimes it would be them performing in places like bars or clubs with herself drumming and the other girl playing the guitar. Regina envied herself in those dreams – she had always wanted to play in a proper band and perform to a proper audience!

Speaking of the other girl, Regina admitted she was a bit into her even though she had never been able to make out her face. Despite being distorted in the dreams, her playing was sophisticated in musicality. The drummer attributed it to her assuming hard work. Her voice embodied the same elegance. Regina had never met a person that could speak as gentle and soft as the unknown girl could in her life. Constantly surrounded by a bunch of boisterous friends, Regina found her quiet voice resembled a haven amidst the muffled noises in her dreams.

She was like an angel.

Regina had yet to learn her name, but her mind would always wander off to her during lessons, which she was not interested in the first place anyway. She had got into the university as her mother anticipated, but after two weeks she had come to conclude that it wasn’t the right path for her. Unlike Cornwall, London was a fascinating place with many things going on in the city. The blonde girl had long found her real interest in rock’n’roll, and living in London only reinforced her belief. She had been to clubs and bars and had seen various bands performing around. The only thing she wanted was to be on the same stage with theirs and pursue her rock’n’roll stardom.

 _With the girl from her dream._ She secretly wished to herself.

 _But life still goes on._ A few hours ago, she had been walking back to her shared flat with Les after her atrocious morning lesson, suffering from lack of sleep and yawning throughout her way back home. Upon entering her own bedroom, Regina had simply let herself collapse on bed and close her eyes. She had fallen asleep in the blink of an eye.

And then she had that dream.

She heard the front door click open, followed by distant footstep sounds. “Regina? Are you up there?”

“Yes?” She shouted. It was Les, her senior in the high school and current roommate.

“I’ve brought you some food like you asked. Come down and eat!”

Oh yes, she almost forgot she had asked Les to buy her some food in the morning when he came back from the university because she didn’t think she had the energy to go out or cook after her nap. She got out of the bed and headed down to the kitchen, where her roommate was taking out some takeout boxes from the paper bag.

“I bought you some pasta. Here you go.”

Regina went to sit across Les and opened the takeout box before her. Her mouth instantly watered at the smell of the carbonara in the box. “Thanks Les. You’re the best.”

“You’re welcome. How was the lesson?”

“As stupid as the last week.” Regina answered after swallowing the spaghetti. “That old fart was still messing with me. He thought I got in because of luck and I shouldn’t be there sitting with other male students. Can you believe he only called me “that female student over there” when he obviously remembers everyone else’s name? He quizzed me three times in the lecture. He asked me the name of a bone between the eye and ear. That was zygoma and I got it right. Then he kept on messing with me and asked me what the meaning of that word in Greek was! So I fucking replied, ‘Is this a biological exam or a fucking Greek exam?’ He was totally livid and just shot me death glares throughout the lesson.”

“Oh wow, what an outrageous comeback. Sounds like you.” Les replied without sounding much surprised – he had been dealing with Regina’s temper since the high school so that response didn’t surprise Regina. “Look, Reg, I’m saying this for your own good. Sometimes you just need to compromise. You know, not many men see women as their equal as I do. You’ve got to bear with these ‘old farts’ in order to convince them you are mature enough to be on par with your male fellows, not just some woman with hysteria.”

“That comes from a Greek word and I know it means ‘uterus’. As if only women will have hysteria.” Regina mocked. “Should have taken my previous boyfriends for a diagnosis.”

“That’s harsh.” Les chuckled. He took out a paper from his jacket pocket and handed it to Regina. “I found this on a notice board in the Science Faculty today. This may brighten up your mood. Check it out.”

Regina took the paper from Les and unfolded it. “‘Wanted, drummer who can do everything that Ginger Baker and Mitch Mitchell can do and Keith Moon.’” She let out a laugh after reading out the words on the paper. “That’s the requirement for a drummer for a…college band? Have they really thought it through?”

Les laughed as well. “It sounds as outrageous as you do so I think you’ll be interested in joining their band.”

“Well, I am intrigued.” Regina continued to read the advertisement. “‘Contact Tim Staffell on…’ so I only have to phone this guy called Tim?”

“I think so. You’ve always wanted to play in a band, haven’t you? Do you think you can do all Ginger Baker, Mitch Mitchell and Keith Moon?” Les replied with an amused tone.

Regina smirked. She knew the answer right away.

“Hell yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That bit about Regina(Roger) being quizzed by her(his) professor is a real trivia :D Check out the book Queen:The Early Years if you're interested!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the belated update! This story should have four chapters in total and one sequel...I hope I can finish them in these two months. Great gratitude to those who are still reading this series T_T

That night, Regina arrived at the destinated venue for the audition. Her initial anticipation was clouded by suspicion now as she found herself standing in front of what seemingly a residential house instead of a proper practice room.

Regina was thrilled to have the chance, of course, but she maintained cautions at the same time. For personal safety reason she brought Les with her, just in case something other than the audition itself happened. Standing in front of the house door, she thought she had made the right choice.

She exchanged a glance with Les before pressing the doorbell. Regina could hear the sound of rustling footsteps on the other side of the door. A few seconds later, the door opened and there appeared a man similar to her age. He had almond shaped eyes and chin-length haircut.

“You must be Regina.” The man greeted with a warm smile, shaking hands with Regina. He turned to Les. “And who is this gentleman?”

“Les Brown.” Les reached out a hand to shake with Tim. “I’m just here for moral support.”

“Nice to meet you, Les. I think you must have learnt my name from Regina – I’m Tim Staffell, the bass player and singer of Smile.” Tim stepped to the side and held the door open. “Make yourself at home.”

Regina and Les entered the door and followed Tim’s lead to the living room. “I hope you don’t mind sitting on the mat. We don’t have much space to fit a sofa. We have floor cushions though.”

The drummer looked around and examined the house. Its cosy size was similar to Les’ and hers so she assumed Tim was probably living with someone else as well. “I don’t mind it at all.”

The three sat down on the floor in a circle. Slapping his knee, Tim straightened his back and started. “Good to meet you in person, Regina. I see you’ve brought your friend with you for moral support but there’s nothing to be worried of. This audition will only be a casual jam.”

“Thanks…No offense but I didn’t expect we’d meet at your home.” Regina laughed a bit nervously. After all, it wasn’t exactly ideal to ask a girl to come over when they were completely strangers (that was why she brought Les with her).

“I apologise for the arrangement.” Tim explained with a regretful smile. “Our guitarist is currently working day and night to prepare for her doctoral screening exam so we don’t really have the time to meet during daytime in our usual practice room on campus. She felt sorry for making you come all this way as well.”

“She?” Regina was immediately alarmed. Her heartbeat picked up speed as the silhouette of that girl on guitar from her dream flashed in her mind. _Could she be her…?_

“Yes, we have a female guitarist.” Tim nodded in response. “I’ve assumed you wouldn’t have a problem with it, since you’re a female musician as well. I was actually surprised when I received your call. I didn’t know there were female drummers out there.”

“Neither did I.” Regina answered half-heartedly. She didn’t mean to take Tim’s approving comment lightly, but the possibility of having her dreams come real? That was a fateful occurrence on a whole different level compared to the audition itself, if Regina was being honest.

After having those dreams for multiple times, despite her envy, she had come to accept the fact that those were only, well, dreams. Obviously, that mesmerising girl from her dreams didn’t belong to her – she belonged to her other self. At first, she treated those as some supernatural experience and just went with the flow her brain had set her in, but as they grew frequent the blonde girl found it harder and harder to keep her pent-up frustration at bay.

_How desperate she wants to make her hers._

Tim showed her a friendly smile, unaware of her inner racing thoughts. “I think you two ladies would make good company. She should be on her way back home now. Soon you’ll meet her.”

Regina’s ear picked up that one word that interrupted her train of thought. “Home?”

“Yes. She lives here. That was why I invited you to our place so she wouldn’t need to rush around.”

“…Oh.” Regina answered blankly. She must have sounded odd as she caught Les’ worried glance. _She is living with Tim? Are they a couple?_

Now she thought about it, she should have taken the reality that heterosexuality was mainstream in the society into account. She herself was a bisexual, but she had only encountered a very few people that were attracted to the same sex. It was not at all weird for Tim being her boyfriend – that was a very legitimate reason to explain why they would form a band together. Still, Regina thought she wasn’t ready to have her fragile dream scattered in such a short time.

Just when the drummer was preparing an excuse to get back to the van and cried herself out with her eyes getting moist, the doorbell rang. Tim got up and headed to the door after excusing himself. Regina could hear the door being unlocked and the approaching sound of footsteps. Finally, Tim reappeared, followed by a figure who was as tall as him. Regina fixed her eyes on the newcomer. Her breath stopped in her throat. An almost torturing nostalgia swelled in her chest as her eyes met hers.

“Regina, meet Brianna May, Smile’s guitarist.”

******

Regina was far from alright right now.

She had her pair of bongos brought from Cornwall sitting on her lap. She brought them upon Tim’s request – she was told on the phone that this would be an acoustic audition so that they wouldn’t receive complaints from the neighbours.

_“First of all, we want to see whether you are compatible with our guitarist.”_

Well, Regina had _a lot of_ problems already although the audition hadn’t even started. The drummer had to go to great lengths to lock her eyes on the bongos and retrain herself from looking up, because every inch of her body was aching to give the girl sitting across her a tight embrace and feel her warmth.

Cross-legged sitting next to her, Les was eyeing her suspiciously. That was for sure – she wasn’t even able to greet Brianna properly when the other girl laid her eyes on her upon entering the living room. She froze like a deer in the highlights and could do nothing but stare at the brunette girl in utter awe. To her surprise, Brianna’s reaction mirrored hers. Her hazel eyes widened when they landed on Regina, mouth hanging open seemingly at a loss for words. The girl only recovered from her state of shock when Tim gave her shoulder a nudge. She quickly gave Regina a nod without looking up to face her again.

Regina was confused. Never on earth did she want to intimidate Brianna – Oh god, she now had a strong urge to hold the other girl’s hands and assure her that she didn’t do it on purpose, that she only, well, wanted to take a good look of her.

 _Now you don’t even get to do that anymore, Regina Taylor._ The drummer tentatively cast a glance at Brianna. All she could see was still the same untamed mop of curls and no face in sight. Although Regina found herself adoring those little cute curls that stood out from the brunette head, she would love to see more of their owner.

“Let’s begin, shall we?” Tim definitely sensed the awkward air in the room that he said with a slightly higher pitch. He turned to Brianna with an encouraging smile. “Brianna, you’re working on a song, aren’t you? You can play that melody to Regina so that she could grasp what Smile sounds like. Let’s give Regina a warm-up.”

Tim seemed genuine in suggesting that, so Regina didn’t expect Brianna’s intense reaction. Head hanging low, she clutched the guitar close to her body and shook her head violently. Regina wondered what song that was – maybe it was about something very private and personal.

Tim sighed. “Okay. Let’s get straight into the audition then. Regina, as I told you on the phone, we want you to play ‘Till There Was You’ with us. I’m sure you came prepared?”

“Of course.” Regina nodded. That was the song she always practised rhythm to. She already had the beats imprinted in her mind without much preparation.

“Brianna loves playing that in the morning. We both agree that it’s simple enough for an acoustic audition.” Tim further explained and smiled at Brianna, who gave a brief nod in response.

Although Regina had come to accept the fact that Tim and Brianna were very close to each other as _roommates_ (she tried to brush off the word “lovers”), she felt a twinge of pain at her chest when Tim casually dropped the details of their shared daily life.

“Regina, are you ready?”

Absorbed in her own thoughts, Regina couldn’t process Tim’s question until she remembered she was here for an _audition_.

“Sure.” She rested her hands on the bongos, waiting for Brianna to count off the song. She waited for a few seconds, yet Brianna gave her no cue, not even an utterance. Her eyes were fixed on the acoustic guitar. The tension in the room was strangely intense that Regina thought she was one step away from bolting out of the suffocating room.

Again, it was Tim who saved the day. “Regina,” the bassist spoke to her with a strained smile, seemingly also confused by Brianna’s unresponsiveness. “Can you please count off the song?”

“No problem! That’s a drummer’s job.” Locking away the tangling thoughts in her head, Regina took a breath and counted. “One, two, three, four!”

Brianna and she started the song in sync. Regina’s heart skipped a bit when Brianna joined her in precise timing. _So she did pay attention to me._ Even though they had yet to interact normally, that small detail was enough to lift Regina’s spirits greatly as she drummed to Brianna’s beautiful guitar sound with a smile.

The drummer watched Brianna’s slender fingers sliding up and down the fretboard, playing chord after chord to her beats. Tim’s mellow voice entered not soon after:

“ _There were bells on a hill_

_But I never heard them ringing_

_No, I never heard them at all_

_Till there was you…_ ”

Soon as Tim’s voice dropped after the first verse, for the first time since they gathered in the living room, Brianna lifted her head. She wore a small smile on her face while looking at the fretboard. Although Regina could only see her side face from where she sat, she was completely captivated by Brianna’s gracefulness.

_She was exactly the same as how she imagined her angel would be._

Thanks to her musical instinct, Regina managed to keep up the beat despite being distracted greatly. She didn’t realise her eyes were locked on the girl on the other side until their eyes accidentally met when Brianna shifted her gaze. For some reasons, Brianna simply stared at her like a spectacle with her mouth slightly agape, like she was at a lost despite still playing the chords precisely.

Regina was sure that she had the same expression as Brianna’s. She knew she should express some kind of friendly gesture – like offering a smile – to Brianna since the girl finally cast her eyes on her. She failed to do so though as she was only pulled back to reality when Tim gave a light cough.

“Oh wow, you are a very good drummer indeed, Regina.” Tim praised. “We want a proper audition with you and your full drum set afterwards – also my bass guitar of course – but you’re definitely in. What do you think about us? Do you think this is what you want?”

“Sure! You guys are amazing! Much skilled than most of the college musicians and bands I’ve seen.” Regina turns to Brianna and gives the girl a heartfelt smile. “And you’re the most skilled guitarist among them, Brianna.”

A deep shade of red blossomed across the guitarist’s cheeks as she stared at Regina in awe. The taller girl quickly lowered her head though. “T-thanks.”

Brianna’s voice was so small that Regina could barely hear her, but of course she did. It was as gentle as the drummer had imagined, and if Regina dared to make a bold assumption, she would absolutely say it was _identical_ to the voice of her imaginary angel.

 _Fuck, should I tell her that? “I think I have been having dreams about you recently?”_ Regina gripped her bongos tightly to suppress the overwhelming desire to pull the other girl into her arms. _She wants her so bad-_

“Regina, since it’s getting late, I guess we should let you go.” Tim stood up and stretched a hand towards her. Regina had no choice but to follow suit, realising that she shouldn’t really act like a weirdo and retreat back to her flat to _calm the fuck down because her heart couldn’t take it anymore_. Meanwhile, Brianna remained seated on the mat and hugging her own acoustic guitar. She looked like an upset hedgehog that Regina just wanted to sit down next to her and asked her what happened.

_Stop being such a creep, Regina Taylor._

After Les and she shook hands with Tim, the bass player took out a few tapes from the shelf and handed them to Regina. “These are some of the original songs Brianna and I composed together. I hope we can play them together in the next audition.”

“I’ll surely prepare myself.” Carefully putting the tapes into her bag, Regina cast one last glance at the guitarist, who seemed to have immersed herself in deep thought and never once looked up. Regina sighed internally and followed Tim’s lead to the door.

“Thanks for coming on such a short notice.” Tim said as he walked Regina and Les to the van. “About Brianna…she’s just slow to warm up to people. She’s very nice actually.”

“She’s a pleasing company.” Regina replied hurriedly. “Please tell her that I look forward to seeing her again.”

“Surely I will. Thanks for tonight. I’ll call you later.” Tim waved them goodbye. “Have a safe trip back home.”

“I’ll be waiting. Thanks for having me.” Regina waved back from the van along with Les. “See you!”

She buckled the seat belt and let Les drive them home, with her mind filled with everything about the curly-haired girl she just met.

******

Having arrived at home, Regina immediately locked herself in her own bedroom. Les had been eyeing at her suspiciously (again) as the drummer remained silent throughout the whole trip. Regina couldn’t blame her flatmate though as she realised that she had been indeed acting oddly.

And of course, she couldn’t tell Les the reason for her strange behaviour.

Lying on the bed, Regina simply stared at the ceiling. Her mind was still a mess but finally she had her private time to sort things out.

She hadn’t been the only one who had been acting oddly. Regina could tell from Tim’s reaction that Brianna hadn’t been being her normal self. The drummer’s heart ached at Brianna’s evasiveness towards her. _Will Brianna accept her at least as her bandmate?_

Regina sat up from the bed and picked up her bag. She took out the tapes Tim had given her. She found that every tape had a label on it that read the title of the song.

“‘Step On Me’, ‘Earth’, ‘Doing All Right’, ‘Polar Bear’…” Regina scanned the labels of the tapes on the bed. Then, she spotted a particular tape.

“‘She Makes Me’…?”

She could tell from the handwriting that the song titles on the labels were written by two persons, who she could easily assume to be Tim and Brianna. The cursive handwriting on the tape she was holding was very elegant indeed.

_Like Brianna._

Her heart was beating soundly as every cell of body was urging her to play the tape. Getting out of bed, Regina went to the tape recorder sitting at the corner and play the record. The tape began to roll.

First, there were a few guitar chords. Then, an exquisite voice rang through the room.

_“I love…she makes me_

_She is my heart_

_She is my love_

_She is my love…”_

Regina collapsed to her knees as Brianna’s ethereal singing voice filled her ears. Every word of the song shook her to the core and touched her very soul, depriving her of any strength to stand up. Her yearning for Brianna – the angel in her dreams – dominated her whole body in an instant.

Regina fell feebly on the floor. She closed her eyes with tears sliding down her cheeks.

_I want her._

******

Regina was not sure when she lost consciousness while crying, but as she gradually recovered and opened her eyes, she found the room a lot brighter than before.

“What…?”

Regina was forced to close her eyes again because of the strong light. Wiping the tears away with the back of her hand, she heard the door open.

_She remembered locking the door._

Before she could react, a voice called her. _The exact same voice on the recording._

“Reg?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally I planned to finish Regina's time travelling plot in one chapter but it got longer than I expected so I decided to upload the upper half first. Enjoy!

“Reg?”

Regina turned to the direction of the voice. She rubbed her eyes to try to a get a clear view of the approaching blurry figure. Finally, she got adjusted to the light and the other person, now standing right in front of her, gradually became distinct.

Regina blinked several times. Then, she shrieked.

“What the fuck-”

She was disrupted by a coughing fit – a side effect of crying. While she was fiercely coughing, the other person quickly reached for the glass jar on the table and poured a glass of water. She sat down beside Regina.

“Here. Drink this.”

Regina took the glass and took a few sips. The cool water soothed her dry throat and stopped her from further coughing. Clutching the glass with two hands, Regina turned back to the woman.

“Why’re you here?” She asked again hoarsely.

“That should be my question. This is my private lounge. No one should be able to get in.” As their eyes locked, Regina was faced with the astounded expression on the woman’s face. Her mouth was dropping open slightly. Slowly, she raised a hand to touch Regina’s cheek. The drummer could feel the slight shaking of her fingers.

“You’re Reg, Regina Taylor, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I’m. Are you a relative of Brianna, Brianna May? Because you two look extremely alike.”

 _Not just ‘alike’._ Regina thought to herself, because the woman in front possessed every feature of the guitarist girl she just met, right from her brunette curls and hazel irises to her pointed nose and long hands. Regina would’ve definitely mistaken her as the Brianna May she knew if it hadn’t been for the few wrinkles around her eyes and her mature appearance.

Upon hearing Regina’s question, the woman removed her hand from Regina’s face and covered her mouth as she stared at her in disbelief. “Oh my God…”

Despite having thousands of questions in her head, Regina decided to patiently wait for the woman’s answer. However, that never came as she suddenly stood up from the couch and left the room in a hurry, leaving Regina alone in the room dumbfounded.

Speaking of the room, she was no way in her own bedroom. Much like what the mysterious woman had just said, the place looked like a private lounge as there were two similar couches placed on the sides of the one she was sitting on. The room was well-lighted, unlike her dark bedroom that was only illuminated by a single dim light bulb. Hanging on the wall was a clock, which pointed to one o’clock. With no windows in the room, Regina assumed the time was now 1am in the midnight.

Beside the glass jar, there were a few other things placed on the tea table before Regina, including some papers. Leaning slightly forward, Regina could see some hand-written words on the papers. Immediately her breath was caught in her throat – she recognised that cursive handwriting.

It was the same as that on the tapes.

Her eyes then automatically caught the dates marked on the papers. The glass fell from her hands and the water inside spilled on the rug. Still, the drummer paid no heed to it as she was struck dumb by the year they read.

_1983._

“1983…” Regina read in a quavering voice. The air drained from her lungs and her mind went completely blank.

_What the fucking hell?_

She didn’t realise the door opened again and the curly-haired woman returned back to the room with a large coat under her arm.

“We’re leaving now. You can’t be seen.” She said curtly and covered Regina with the coat, pulling the hood up over Regina’s head. Kneeling down, the woman stared at Regina with her eyes travelling all over Regina’s face. She whispered in an airy voice.

“You’re really her…”

“Why am I in 1983?” Regina asked abruptly. Her voice was shaking and she felt suffocated. “What the fuck is happening?”

Suddenly Regina was taken into the woman’s arms. She was pressed close to the woman’s chest that she could hear her rapid heartbeats.

“I’m sorry, Reg…I don’t know what’s happening either, but it’s alright, we’ve got your back. We’ll figure this out.”

A pair of large hands stroked her back gently. Tears spilled from Regina’s eyes for the second time of the night as the anxious emotions inside her began to calm down in the warm cocoon of the unknown woman. She felt like a little girl in her mother’s embrace.

“Who’re you? How did you know my name?” She asked in a raspy voice.

“I’m-”

“Bri, you said there’s an emergency. This is definitely beyond my expectation.”

Regina turned to look in the direction of the voice, which sounded _strangely familiar_. As the owner of the voice came into sight, she thought she was going to faint.

Because there stood a blonde woman looking identical to her.

******

If it hadn’t been for Brianna’s hand on hers, Regina thought she would have just smashed her head against the car window and knocked herself out so that she could wake up in her bedroom again and break away from this _nightmare_.

Yes, she could now 100% confirm that this woman was also a “Brianna May” after listening to her talking to _the other Regina Taylor_. _What the actual fuck._

Everything after they had left the lounge was a blur as she had been told not to lift her head up (she perfectly understood the reason now). She had been led out of the building and into a car in haste with Brianna holding her hand all along. After they had got into the car, her other self immediately closed the curtains with Brianna and started the engine right away.

Therefore, the three of them were now packed in a car with the other Regina driving and Brianna sitting beside her in the back seat. The older woman didn’t drop her hand for a second. Feeling a bit embarrassed, Regina tentatively withdrew her hand from Brianna’s. Sensing Regina’s movement, the older woman immediately let go of her hand and offered an apologetical smile with her cheeks slightly blushing.

“I’m sorry, Reg-Regina. This must be very awkward for you.”

“Kind of…” Regina fixed her eyes on her lap. Now that things had temporarily settled down, the blonde girl recalled the Brianna May she met a few hours ago. Apparently, this older Brianna was much more confident than the younger one in her time. _Even her clothing style was a lot bolder._ Regina thought to herself as she stole a few glances at Brianna’s cleavage uncovered by the button-down white shirt and her round hips wrapped in the tight jeans. _She had had no idea that Brianna had such a curvy figure._

“Bri, stop seducing my younger self with your boobs. At least button up your shirt.”

Regina’s face flushed in embarrassment whereas Brianna just laughed and buttoned her shirt as the other Regina told. “I was all alone in the studio so I just left it open. I didn’t expect anyone to appear.” She turned to Regina and stuck her tongue out in a childish way. “Sorry.”

Regina only nodded, still much embarrassed. Having come to London by herself, the drummer thought she was finally an adult that was not afraid of confronting people older than her, such as her professors. However, her confidence was all gone by now sitting with these two women she just met because they could just read her like a book.

Regina peeked at her older self in the driving seat. Unlike Brianna whose hairstyle remained unchanged, the older Regina had her hair cut short to chin-length. Regina was self-aware of her own beauty, but this Regina, whom Regina assumed to be in her mid-thirties, surely looked…handsome. Wearing black leather pants and jacket that matched her black boots, her older self somehow gave off a fierce vibe in contrast with Brianna’s soft, motherly aura.

Speaking of Brianna, Regina couldn’t help but begin to ponder over Brianna’s relationship with her older self. They seemed very intimate, considering that the other Regina could make such a remark on Brianna’s body with Brianna seeming unbothered at all – the younger Brianna hadn’t even had eye contact with her, let alone a normal conversation. This Brianna was just like another person.

“By the way, you do know that I’m probably that Brianna May you mentioned, right?” Brianna asked, sounding a bit nervous. “You know, I’m sure Reg is pretty much self-evident, but I’m not sure about myself…”

“Yes. I can put together the puzzle.” Regina casually answered. It was kind of bizarre that they all knew each other without proper introductions. “You’re Brianna May. I just met you and Tim for the first time in your house. I brought a pair of bongos and auditioned for the drummer’s spot in your band Smile.”

Brianna looked to the other Regina as the latter looked back at her. They exchanged a look before Brianna turned back to her and said carefully. “Reg and I didn’t meet like that. We met in a bar and Reg was in the audience.”

Regina’s heart stopped. “So you’re not…”

“I do think we’re still the same Brianna May and Regina Taylor though.” Brianna explained. “You were born on July 26, 1949, right? Your first instrument was the ukulele, and you sang in a cathedral choir and played with your girl schoolmates in Truro before leaving for London.”

“Those are all…correct.” Regina gulped. _This Brianna surely knew her too well._

“You’ve travelled to a universe that may not belong to your own timeline despite overlaps.” Brianna concluded. She then gave Regina a mischievous smile. “By the way, those are not the only things I know about you. You first masturbated at the age of-”

“Don’t tease her. She’s still a child.”

“I’m not a child!” Regina protested despite her blushing face. “I’ve come of age already.” She retorted her older self, who just shrugged in response.

“But you’re like a child to me. You know, I’m now 36 and you’re only…19? I’m almost old enough to be your mother.” Brianna said with a doting smile. “You’re so cute, Regina.”

“Stop it.” Pressing her head against the car curtain, Regina wanted to smash her head against the car window now for another reason. That part about her first masturbation…she had told no one even her closest friends and previous partners!

Despite embarrassment, Regina could now at least further assert the possibility that this Brianna was _extremely_ familiar with her, probably not at the level of normal friends anymore.

_Almost like her lover._

Regina’s thoughts stopped at that moment. Slowly, she turned around and looked back at Brianna. Under the yellowish roof light above, the delicate features of the curly-haired woman triggered a sense of nostalgia in her, not just because of her resemblance with the Brianna May she just played the bongos with, but an emotion that permeated her whole soul and heart.

“‘You won’t regret choosing me and your true self.’” She slowly stated. Brianna’s eyes widened upon her words. The other Regina also immediately stopped the car. Astonishment was written all over her face.

“You said that to Brianna in your home-my home-in Cornwall, didn’t you?”

“How did you know?” The woman identical to her asked in shock.

Regina took a deep breath. “Because you two have been in my dreams for a while.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love how Brian (Brianna) in the 1970s was a shy bean but became talkative in the 80s XD


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for following this story so far. Enjoy!

Regina began telling the two women about her dreams in the recent nights whilst the other Regina continued driving. They listened to her carefully, and nodded when Regina mentioned specific scenarios.

“I didn’t recognise those places in my dreams except for the library of my university, Les’ and my flat, and my home in Cornwall.” Regina shrugged after finishing telling her dreams. “I was thinking if those things belonged to your past, seeing that you two were quite…close.” She said, cautious in choosing her word.

Initially serious, the two women broke into laughter upon Regina’s question. Regina was surprised that not only Brianna laughed, but also her solemn-looking older self.

Coincidentally, they were stopped by a red light. Without warning, Brianna suddenly lurched forward and wrapped her arms around the other Regina’s neck from behind. She looked at Regina with a mischievous smile and asked.

“What do you think we’re?”

 _Ok I get it! You two are girlfriends!_ Regina screamed internally as she watched Brianna plant a kiss on her older self’s cheek with the latter affectionately ruffling her curly hair in response. The drummer was going to shout out the answer when she noticed a shining circle on Brianna’s ring finger on her left hand.

“Oh my god. Are you two wives? You’re married?” Regina was stunned. Homosexuality in 1968 was still a taboo frowned upon despite the decriminalisation of gay acts a year ago. Regina had hung out with a few girls before but both and her dates knew they were only a one-time thing that serves as an experimental experience. She had had no idea that two same-sex persons could succeed in maintaining such a long-run relationship, let alone become official spouses.

Staggering discovery aside, Regina was genuinely happy for her older self and the Brianna in this universe, even though Brianna’s previous words pricked her heart like a tiny needle.

_“You’ve travelled to a universe that may not belong to your own timeline despite overlaps.”_

Regina wished this was also her future, with _her Brianna_. Undoubtedly, this Brianna was attractive with her cheerfulness and confidence – Regina wondered if she was born with a different personality from that of the Brianna in her time from the beginning, considering that she belonged to another universe – her heart still lingered on the shy guitarist she met back in Tim’s house. She ached for seeing her again and comforting the nervous girl in her arms.

_Just a few hours had passed by, yet she missed her badly already._

“What? How did you…?” Brianna seemed surprised. Her reaction was out of Regina’s expectation and it confused the drummer. _A diamond ring on the ring finger. What else could it imply?_

The other Regina looked down at Brianna’s hand on her neck and noticed the ring. She gave it a pat.

“Bri, you’re wearing it on your finger.” The blonde woman softly said.

Brianna’s eyes darted down at her hand and realised instantly. Unwrapping her arms from around Regina’s neck, the curly-haired woman sat back down beside Regina. Without Brianna blocking the view, Regina noticed the empty finger of her older self.

“I want to put it on my finger at least when I’m alone…I’m sorry for giving you the wrong idea, Regina.” With a sad smile, Brianna removed the ring from her finger. The act shocked Regina.

“I don’t understand. Are you married or not?”

“We didn’t get married technically, but we’ve exchanged vows between ourselves.” Whilst Brianna silently took off her necklace and tied the ring to it, her older self explained as she pulled up hers around her neck. A ring identical to Brianna’s was hanging at the end of it.

“We plan to,” Brianna smiled despite the sorrow in her eyes. “once we can.”

“Same-sex marriage is still far from legal and acceptable even though we’re a decade ahead.” The blonde woman sighed as she turned the steering wheel. “But Brianna and I’ve seen each other as life partners since a long time ago, so we decided to get married on our own against all odds.”

“Against all odds…” Regina repeated quietly. “That’s why you need to hide your rings?”

“Sort of. The media have one or two clues about our relationship though.” The other Regina hissed darkly. “Those vultures.”

Brianna laughed nervously, attempting to ease the atmosphere. “We held a proper wedding though. Reg and I even got to wear wedding dresses.” She clapped her hands with a beaming face. “I can show you some photos after we arrive at our home!”

“Your home? We’re heading for your home?” Regina hadn’t given a thought to where they were going until Brianna mentioned it.

“Of course.” The other Regina turned her head to Regina with a smirk. “Where else do you think we can hide you?”

******

Sitting on the sofa alone, Regina was awed by the size of the mansion. She was certain that it was twice – no, thrice – as large as her home back in Cornwall. The living room itself was already the size of Les’ and her cramped flat, maybe even bigger. The blonde girl eyed at the sofa and she tentatively placed a hand on the fabric. After coming to London, she was enthusiastic about visiting high-end fashion and furniture stores that she often dropped by those shops after her lessons. The smooth velvet at her fingertips felt the same as when she stealthily touched those expensive sofas in the furniture store. This lavish sofa plus the chandelier above, the paintings on the walls, the oriental rug on the floor…her older self and Brianna had certainly made a fortune by whatever they did. _Probably still related to rock’n’roll._ Regina thought as her eyes landed on the multiple guitars hung on the wall and recalled the fact Brianna and her were in a studio before they left.

Ending their sensitive conversation on marriage, Brianna had shifted the topic to how she had gotten here. Regina had been evasive because she was too embarrassed to tell Brianna that she had literally cried herself to time travel over her singing voice even though she had zero idea of how that made sense. It was her older self who saved her from Brianna’s persistent questions _(“Don’t push her, Bri. It’s probably something personal related to you.”_ – that resulted in Brianna giggling and calling her cute again while Regina simply wanted to bury herself in a hole).

Speaking of her older self and Brianna, the other Regina had told her to stay in the living room before she took Brianna’s hand and led her upstairs. Brianna had fallen asleep on her back in the car. At first, Regina was startled by Brianna’s sudden weight on her and their touching shoulders. She completely stiffened up until the other Regina casted a glance at her through the rear-view mirror. The woman just nodded before focusing on the road again. Regina guessed she had no choice but to allow Brianna’s curls to brush over her face for the rest of the trip, which she was glad didn’t last long.

So, here she was, waiting for her older self to return once she finished putting Brianna to bed. Brianna had given her a big hug before she was forced to rest. The tall woman had protested (“But I want to know more about Regina, Reg!”), but was declined by her lover (“You locked yourself in the studio for three days straight and you already know me well enough, Bri.”). Regina noticed Brianna had been yawning throughout their conversation, and she also had very dark circles under her eyes. Regina guessed she hadn’t slept for a long time.

Regina’s eyes caught a photo placed beside the table lamp. In the photo were Brianna and her older self, in white wedding dresses of two different styles, along with several other people. Regina was captivated by the photo instantly. She moved closer to take a better look. Whereas Brianna was wearing a long-sleeved puffy gown decorated with delicate beading and embroidery, her older self was in a simple sleeveless sheath satin gown. Standing next to each other, both Brianna and her other self were smiling happily. Staring at the photo, the blonde girl was suddenly overwhelmed by a strong emotion – only when she felt tears dropping on her lap did she find herself crying.

“It was taken several months ago when Brianna and I held our own wedding.”

Regina’s teary eyes looked up and saw her older self walking down the stairs. The younger girl immediately wiped her tears away. “Sorry.”

“It’s alright.” The other Regina said in a soft tone as she sat down across her. “We didn’t invite many people, just those closest to us.” She pointed at a small figure in the photo. “Here’s my mum-our mum.”

“Mum…? Oh.” Regina immediately recognised the small woman standing next to her older self in the photo. It put a smile on her face. Her mum was the strongest person she had ever known. Coming from a single-parent family, her mum raised her single-handedly and she had been lenient in allowing her to make her own decisions and supportive all the way. That was how she ended up becoming a counter-traditional female drummer.

 _Don’t let your life depend on a man._ That was what her mother always told her after she divorced her father. She probably didn’t expect her daughter to marry a _woman_ , but Regina was glad to see her contented smile in the photo.

“Where are Brianna’s parents?” She casually asked. The other Regina was silent for a few seconds before she answered hesitantly.

“They were not there.”

Catching the dark expression on her older self’s face, Regina realised that was a sensitive question. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright.” Her older self said again before she continued with a sad smile. “I hope things will be different in your universe.”

Regina only nodded and decided not to question further, sensing that she shouldn’t.

Her older self opened the drawer next to her and took out a pack of cigarettes from it. She handed the cigarette pack to her. “Here. I think you may need this.”

“…Thanks.” Regina took out a cigarette from the pack. The other woman lit it for her. As Regina inhaled the smoke, her body immediately loosened up. It had not occurred to her until now, how tensed up she was.

“You don’t smoke?” She asked her other self, who only watched her smoke without having one for herself.

“I quit not long after beginning to live with Brianna.” The older woman shrugged. “She’s not around now. Tell me how you got here exactly.”

Regina nodded and began to tell her story. She told her she was listening to Brianna’s tape right before she lost consciousness.

“The song…I think it was called ‘She Makes Me’.”

Her older self raised an eyebrow before walking to the shelf on the other end of the room. “I know that song. Brianna put it out when we were making our third album. I didn’t know she had it written during Smile.”

“I don’t know…I had a strong desire upon hearing the song.” Regina held the smoke in and slowly breathed the smoke back out before she continued. “I want her.”

The other Regina stopped running her fingers along the shelf and stared back at her. “May I remind you that this Brianna is mine.”

“I know!” Regina rolled her eyes before she let out a sigh. “Alright. I don’t know. You know, I’ve been seeing you two in my dreams and I thought I had a crush on that brunette girl from my dreams-” The other Regina raised her eyebrow again. “-I didn’t know she was your Brianna from another universe and was 36 years old already, alright?!” Regina exclaimed, feeling much embarrassed by the fact that her crush turned out to be, in Brianna’s words, _almost old enough to be her mother_.

_She felt her heart had changed though after meeting the shy guitarist in Tim’s house. She found that she was drawn to her rather than the girl from her dreams and the Brianna in this universe._

Her older self nodded with a knowing look on her face. “Tell me more about the Brianna in your universe.”

“She was extremely shy.” Regina sighed. “She kept avoiding having eye contact with me. I couldn’t even strike up a normal conversation with her.” She put the cigarette in her mouth again – her older self was right. _She needed it._ “A total opposite of your Brianna.”

Upon hearing her words, the other Regina laughed loudly. “No, she was exactly like that when we first met.” The older woman walked back to the sofa and showed Regina the tape in her hand.

“Do you mean this tape?”

Regina’s eyes widened at the object before her. From the case to the handwriting on the label, the tape looked exactly the same as the one she had played in her bedroom. “I believe so…”

 _Are they the same Brianna?_ Regina looked at her older self. Not only did they look identical, but the way they spoke, their manners, and those personal details Brianna had mentioned about her…Regina was very certain that Brianna was right about them being the same Regina Taylor.

“Do you think the Brianna I met was the Brianna you met, just like us being the same Regina Taylor?” Regina asked quietly, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

“Even if I say so, does it matter?” Her older self smiled at her – now as the older woman sat close to her, Regina realised she had the same motherly smile as Brianna’s. “Not everyone was born with a fearless personality. Some people need a push.”

She stood up and inserted the tape in the record player. “If my assumption is correct, this should be the right trigger…”

_“I love…she makes me_

_She is my heart_

_She is my love_

_She is my love…”_

As the familiar tune rang in her ears, a sudden dizziness beset Regina. Feeling the last of her strength draining from her body, she collapsed on the sofa and her eyes grew blurry. Before blackness overtook her, the last thing Regina saw was her older self walking towards her and taking the cigarette from her hand. She knelt down and whispered to her.

“Go find her, Regina. She needs you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story about fem!maylor in the 80s getting married will be uploaded to this story following the last chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading this story so far!!! So, Regina's dreams were actually the past of fem!maylor in "She Makes Me". "Long Away" fem!maylor =/= "She Makes Me" fem!maylor (that's why they met differently). Please enjoy the last chapter!

Regina was awakened by the alarm clock in her room.

Yes, as soon as Regina sat up and intuitively pressed the button on the clock to turn off the sound, she found herself back in her cosy bedroom again. After she had wiped the sleep out of her eyes and blinked a few times, she found her surroundings had changed from luxurious sofas and extravagant paintings to her own Jimi Hendrix’s posters and biology textbooks. Regina’s mouth went slack as she stared at all the familiar objects in the room – her own bedroom.

_Am I back to 1968? To my own universe?_

She jolted up from the floor and rushed down to the living room then to the front door. She opened the door and picked up the newspaper at the doorstep. She immediately searched for the date printed at the top.

_“September 19, 1968”_

Regina would have screamed on the spot if Les hadn’t called her from behind. “I was just about to knock your door, Regina. Can you pick up the newspaper, please?”

“Fuck! You scared the hell out of me.” Regina turned around and cursed out loud. Les was standing in the living room with an offended look. _The Les she was familiar with._

“Morning tantrum?” Les raised an eyebrow. “Anyway, breakfast is ready. Come to the kitchen after you get ready.”

“Alright.” Putting her hand on her heart, Regina tried to calm herself down as she walked back to the house with the newspaper in her hand. She put it down on the couch and took a look at it one more time.

She went to Smile’s audition on September 18, which was yesterday. It meant that she just time-travelled for a few hours in the middle of the night. She assumed the passage of time was the same as when she was in 1983 with Brianna and her older self.

 _Brianna and her older self._ Regina brushed her teeth while musing over the extraordinary experience she had last night. _So, the strange dreams she had been having recently actually belonged to the past of Brianna and her other self in another universe, who apparently stayed together after Brianna had “chosen her and her true self”._ Splashing water on her face and looking into the mirror, Regina found the same face of the blonde woman she had been talking to just before her blackout.

She now understood the part about “choosing me”, which obviously meant the other Regina, but she had yet to understand the other part.

“‘Your true self…’” Regina muttered to herself as she walked to the kitchen. _Is that something that she should go find out herself?_

She remained silent while eating the pancakes Les had prepared. Her strange behaviour apparently worried her roommate as the man asked in a concerned tone.

“Are you feeling alright, Reg?”

“Y-yes.” Regina’s head jolted up. She answered hastily.

Les closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair. “You know, if you’re worrying about the audition, you nailed it. I’m sure Tim and Brianna would contact you like they said.”

“Thank you, Les.” Regina sighed. She wasn’t worried about the audition at all – she had confidence in herself since the moment she called Tim. What was troubling her was only Smile’s guitarist.

“I knew that ad was put up by an Imperial student, but I didn’t expect that student to be Brianna May of all students.”

Regina got to her feet in a flash upon Les’ words. She asked in shock. “You know her?”

“Wow, calm down.” Les looked surprised. “She’s the tutor of my friend from the Physics Department. It’s rare to have a female student in the Science Faculty so he mentioned her to me.”

“I-I want to meet her.” Regina didn’t mean to stutter, but her heart rate was skyrocketing. _Brianna, Brianna, Brianna-_

Les stared at her in suspicion but he continued. “I’m actually going to have my weekly lunch with that friend of mine today and we promised to meet outside his classroom. The tutoring session is right before that. We can meet up at the campus gate at twelve and I can take you there, but you do have lessons in the morning? I-”

“I’m totally fine with that!” Regina exclaimed. “Let’s meet at twelve.”

“Alright. I’ll see you at the campus gate.” Les looked amused but he didn’t comment on her over-enthusiasm. “You know, you need to hurry up or else you’ll be late for class.”

“Oh shit. You’re right.” She had a class at eight. That was why she had turned on the alarm clock and waken up in the bloody early morning in the first place.

As she finished her breakfast and left the flat, she only had one thought in her mind.

_I’m confessing to her._

******

Leaning against the wall, Regina was waiting outside the classroom which Les had led her to. He had left with his friend a minute ago, leaving Regina alone to wait for a particular brunette girl to come out from the classroom.

Regina could sense that she was being watched. Well, she guessed it was, as Les had said, rare for a female to appear at the Science Faculty. Around her were only male students and professors, like all the classes she was attending. She was used to being stared at, so those gazes didn’t faze her at all.

She didn’t need to wait any longer as the classroom door opened and there walked out the girl she was dying to meet. Regina swallowed at the sight before her, her throat suddenly dry – Unlike the loose hoodie and jeans yesterday, Brianna was wearing a simple white shirt and a knee-length black skirt with a pair of glasses on her nose. She looked like a professional tutor, which Regina assumed she was.

_If Regina was being honest, Brianna was incredibly hot in that outfit._

Hugging several books against her chest, Brianna was talking to a male student as she walked out from the door. She didn’t seem to have spotted Regina. The drummer found that the other girl didn’t seem nervous at all, contrary to how she appeared yesterday. She was smiling at the male student at ease and the sight irked Regina. _She didn’t even make eye contact with her, let alone give her a smile._

As Regina saw Brianna bid her student goodbye, she walked up to her while suppressing the raging emotions inside her body. “Hi, Brianna.”

The other girl looked shocked upon seeing her. Regina assumed it was a natural reaction as Brianna couldn’t have reckoned her to appear at this moment, but never in a million years did she expect her next reaction.

Without giving her a reply, Brianna abruptly turned around and scampered towards the stairs. _She was running away from Regina._ The drummer was completely dumbfounded. _What had she done to make Brianna shut her out like that?_

“Brianna, Wait!”

She had to run in order to catch up to Brianna, whose long legs gave her the upper hand. Finally, Regina caught her at the bottom of the stairs. She grasped her arm to stop her from running. She said between breaths. “Brianna-”

The other girl stopped. As the drummer gradually recovered, she said firmly.

“Brianna, can we talk?”

“…Tim’s not an Imperial student. I can give you his school name.” The brunette girl said quietly. Her eyes darted down without facing Regina. Her answer made Regina even more irritated.

“No! I wasn’t looking for Tim. I was looking for you.”

“If it’s about Smile, Tim handles everything. I only play the guitar-”

“I said I was looking for you!” Regina didn’t realise she had raised her voice until she saw Brianna’s astounded face. Catching the glances casted at them, Regina decided to cut to the chase.

“I want to ask you about this.” She took out the tape from her bag and showed it to Brianna. The other girl’s face immediately turned horrified.

“Where did you get it from?” She asked in shock.

“It was among the tapes Tim had given me last night.” Regina took a deep breath. “Brianna-”

“That was a mistake. That tape is my personal composition. It’s not a Smile’s song.” Brianna cut her off as she hurriedly explained. Regina was surprised, considering how shy the other girl appeared towards her. “C-can you please give it back to me?”

Judging from Brianna’s reaction, there must be something going on with this particular song. Her older self had said that Brianna put out the song when they were making the third album, so this song shouldn’t be a secret?

_Or, it was a secret before…_

A thought crossed Regina’s mind. _How come she had never given it a thought?_ “Brianna, who is this ‘she’?”

Brianna was dumbstruck upon her question, but she lowered her head again, clutching her books tightly. “Can you please give it back to me?” She asked again in a strained voice, avoiding Regina’s question.

The brunette girl seemed close to a meltdown and the sight pained Regina’s heart. Drawing circles on Brianna’s arm, Regina cooed. “I’ll give it back to you, Brianna. But I want to talk to you, alright? Can we first talk?”

Despite hesitancy, Brianna gave her a nod. Regina sighed in relief.

******

Regina knew this place.

Following Brianna’s lead, Regina immediately recognised this room with a “Jazz Club Room” sign – it was where she dreamed of the other Brianna and Regina practising. _Brianna and her surely shared a lot of familiarity with their counterparts._ The thought further reinforced Regina’s assumption of Brianna being the same Brianna from the other universe.

_If this Brianna equalled that Brianna, then her love would be…_

“What do you want to talk about?”

Brianna put down her books on the table and took off her glasses. She crossed her arms across the chest in a defensive way.

Despite feeling disheartened at Brianna’s cold attitude, Regina decided to come clean with her no matter what. So, she told her about the dreams she had been having in recent nights.

“When I saw you, I knew you were that brunette girl from my dreams.” Regina decided to leave out her time travel experience – the dreams themselves were strange enough on their own.

“After I saw you in person, I realised how much I want to be with you.” Regina took a deep breath. “I’ve fallen in love with you, Brianna.”

She said it. _There it goes._

Brianna looked appalled while she told her story. Regina had assumed it was because those dreams were indeed very bizarre, but the first response Brianna gave her was out of her expectation.

“You’re really Regina…”

Regina was confused at first, but then she remembered she had heard something similar before.

_“You’re really her…”_

The older Brianna she met in the other universe had said the exact same thing to her in the studio lounge, because she looked identical to her lover.

“Brianna,” Her breath caught in her chest. “You knew me before we met, didn’t you?”

Brianna’s eyes widened in shock. She seemed to be at a loss for words.

Eventually, Brianna nodded.

Regina’s heart pounded in her ears. “Did you have the same dreams as mine?”

A nod again.

“Oh my god…” Regina covered her mouth with her hands. She couldn’t believe it – they had shared the same dreams, and Brianna knew her before they met just like Regina.

_Are they destined to be together, just as Brianna and Regina?_

“Brianna…” Regina slowly stated. She placed a hand on Brianna’s hand, which was slightly shaking against hers. “Do you think we can become what we were in our dreams?”

This should be the final chapter of the incredible journey they had. The final stroke would be a yes from “Brianna” – a yes for “Regina”.

But things didn’t go as planned.

Brianna slowly placed her other hand on top of Regina’s hand on hers. She grasped it with a bit of force and choked out a reply.

“I’m sorry, Regina. I can never be that Brianna.”

Regina was transfixed. _What? Why?_ “What do you mean?”

Tears slid down Brianna’s cheeks as the other girl struggled to speak with her trembling lips. “I can never be her. I’m sorry-”

No matter what Brianna’s reason was to decline her, Regina knew it wasn’t the other girl’s true intent. Something was suppressing her to express her true feeling.

_Her true self._

Everything clicked into place. Regina finally understood what her older self meant.

_Brianna needs her now._

“Brianna,” she tiptoed to hug the other girl. She soothed her back gently. “Do you love me?”

“Yes.” Brianna answered immediately as she hugged Regina back. The taller girl sobbed. “But I can never be as brave as her. I’d never have the courage to ask you to be my girlfriend.”

“What do you mean?”

“I-I couldn’t hear anything in my dreams, except for this one line.” Brianna hiccupped as she buried her face against Regina’s shoulder.

“‘Regina, will you be my girlfriend?’”

Regina’s mouth was slightly agape as realisation hit her. _Brianna knew she was the love of her life. They were destined to be together._

_Then why did she avoid her all this time?_

“So, what do you mean by you can never be her?” Despite the thousand questions she had, she decided to help Brianna overcome her struggle first.

Because she was her angel.

“Regina,” Brianna pulled away from the hug and stared at Regina with teary eyes. “I’m a lesbian, but I can’t even accept myself to be a lesbian, let alone ask you to be my girlfriend.” Letting out a shaky breath, she continued. “I-I’m just not her.”

_“Not everyone was born with a fearless personality. Some people need a push.”_

Her older self’s words surfaced in her mind – it was the time for her to give Brianna a push.

“Who cares if you’re her or not.” She wiped away the tears on Brianna’s cheeks and smiled at her precious angel. “Brianna, will you be my girlfriend?”

Brianna stared at her in disbelief. “Regina…”

“Look, I love you, Brianna. I want to be with you.” Regina said as she stroked the taller girl’s cheek. “‘She Makes Me’…‘she’ was me from your dreams, wasn’t she?”

A pink hue coloured Brianna’s face. “Yes…” Slowly, she gave Regina a small smile. “It was about you.”

Wrapping her arms around Brianna’s shoulders, Regina pressed herself against the other girl. She whispered. “Can you sing it for me?”

Brianna wrapped her hands around Regina’s lower back. She began to sing.

_“I love…she makes me_

_She is my heart_

_She is my love_

_She is my love…”_

Regina closed her eyes and immersed herself in the sweet singing voice of her beloved girl. “Brianna, will you be my girlfriend?” She asked again.

“Yes…I’d love to.” Brianna rested her head on Regina’s shoulder and whispered. “Thank you, Regina.”

“You can call me ‘Reg’ actually.” Regina said affectionately as she caressed her curly hair.

“And you can call me ‘Bri’.” The other girl replied softly.

Regina smiled. She nuzzled up against her angel. _Finally, she had her in her arms._

“You won’t regret choosing me and your true self, Bri.”

Whatever came, she would stay by Brianna’s side and never let go of her.

**THE END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is basically how fem!maylor from "She Makes Me" encourage fem!maylor from "Long Away" to confess their love for each other uwu I forgot to mention but the backstory and characterisation of "Long Away" fem!maylor are the same as "She Makes Me" fem!maylor. That's why Brianna in this story had the same issue about being a lesbian as the Brianna in "She Makes Me".  
> As I said, I'm planning to write a sequel about how 80s fem!maylor got married to each other. The story is a bit sad so it might not be uploaded very soon (but probably within September)
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this story. Kudos and comments are very much welcomed! (especially comments XD)


	6. Spin-off 1: Smile universe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo this is just a scene I have in my mind for Smile fem!maylor after they got together with Brianna feeling unsure of their "accidental" relationship. The 80s maylor marriage story is still in progress m(_ _)m

Brianna had been stealing glances at Regina throughout the night while pretending she was enjoying herself drinking alone in the booth.

“Regina”, a name that she had come to learn during her sleep when she dreamt of herself asking the other girl out, the “she” that made her heart throb hard every time she remembered those dreams after waking up, that she even felt compelled to write a song about her in order to ease her suffering.

Brianna still couldn’t believe her imaginary crush truly existed. The blonde girl standing right next to the bar counter, laughing loudly with her friends, had the same beautiful face and shining blonde hair as the girl from her dreams. Captivated by the other girl, Brianna didn’t realise she was staring at her until the waiter came to fill her glass.

After mumbling a thank you, Brianna cupped the glass in her hands and stared at her own reflection in the water. Only after she had forced herself to tear her gaze off Regina was she aware of her fast heartbeat and burning ears.

One week ago, after Regina confronted her in the Imperial College and asked her out, the blonde girl became the first partner in her life (her first girlfriend – Brianna blushed at the thought of it). After that, Regina had been the initiative one in their relationship – even though so far they had only met through their daily rehearsals, Regina had been seizing every moment to get close to her. She would always hold her arm and lean on her shoulder during breaks to tell her all sort of random things, which Brianna enjoyed very much since she was able to feel the warmth of the other girl. Sometimes when Tim had headed out, Regina would even steal a kiss on her cheek and giggle cutely at Brianna’s blushing face.

Brianna loved spending time with Regina – she couldn’t even take her mind off her for one second – but to be honest, she still didn’t know how to handle her relationship with Regina. They only knew each other in real life for one week, yet they were already girlfriends. As a science person, Brianna was conscious of the absurdity of her whole encounter with Regina. The other girl was still a mystery to her that she had yet to learn the slightest bit about her, like how outgoing she actually was in contrast with her reserved personality.

Brianna knew she should go and meet Regina’s friends, whom the drummer invited to Smile’s first gig. However, those people definitely seemed out of her interpersonal comfort zone – they all looked very stylish and laid-back, much like Regina. A shy girl like her definitely didn’t belong to the group.

_Like the way I don’t belong to her._

Brianna bit her lips as the worrying thoughts crawled back to her mind again. She wasn’t sure when Regina would get tired of her. Brianna was sure that Regina, being outgoing as she was, would never have cast a glance on a shy girl like her if it were not for the fateful dreams they had shared. Brianna hated her passive self, but anxiety always overtook her even when she was only trying to touch Regina’s hand with her fingertips – she couldn’t even bring herself to accomplish a simple thing like that.

She was afraid that one day Regina would regret getting together with her and their relationship was a nothing but a providential mistake.

“Time to go, Brianna.” Her thoughts were interrupted by Tim’s voice. The bassist was holding the bass guitar in his hand with his coat on. He motioned to Regina. “Let’s get Regina.”

Brianna nodded and put down the glass. Picking up her and Regina’s bags on the sofa, she walked to Regina and her group of friends with Tim, who politely greeted the group and told them they were leaving. After waving her friends goodbye, Regina immediately clung on Brianna’s arm and pressed her body against the guitarist’s while mumbling something incomprehensible with her eyes closed. Brianna couldn’t help but smile at the childish behaviour of the drunk girl. _She is so cute._

“You two are like sisters.” Tim said amusedly as Brianna got into the van after setting Regina in the seat. He placed his stuff in the passenger seat. “Take care of her, Brianna. I’ll come back in a minute after having a last word with the owner.”

“We’re not sisters!” Regina suddenly shouted, turning around to face Tim, who was already walking away. “We’re-“

“Regina, you’re drunk.” Brianna hurriedly cut in. She wrapped her arm around Regina’s shoulder and cooed softly. “Get some rest, alright?”

“Bri…” Without warning, Regina suddenly shifted and moved to climb onto Brianna’s lap. Brianna’s heartbeat almost stopped when Regina wrapped her arms around her neck and nuzzled her head against it. She mumbled to her ear. “But we’re girlfriends…lovers…not sisters…”

Regina’s hot breath sent shiver down her spine as the guitarist felt a sense of arousal began to grow inside her body. _She couldn’t indulge herself. She had to be rational. That’s right._ Hugging back, Brianna made up her mind and calmly spoke.

“Reg, I think we need to reconsider whether we’re for each other or not.”

Brianna knew Regina was in a drunk state, but she couldn’t suppress her anxiety anymore. She needed to come clean with Regina.

The drummer tore herself away from Brianna and looked at her with widened eyes. “What do you mean?”

Brianna tried to explain with her best effort. “I mean, you see, our personalities are completely polar opposite. You love hanging around people, while I’m just a nerdy girl-“

“Are you breaking up with me?”

Tears rolled down from the baby blue eyes as Regina’s glossy lips began to tremble. Brianna was shocked by the sight in front of her. _She made Regina cry._

“No! I’m not breaking up with you, alright?” Feeling that her heart had shattered into thousand pieces because of guilt, Brianna hurriedly wiped the tears from Regina’s eyes. “Please don’t cry.”

“Then w-why did you ask me that?” Regina asked in a wheezy voice. Her lips were still trembling. “You don’t like me as your girlfriend? Did I do something wrong?”

“You did nothing wrong! You’re perfect, Reg.” Brianna said quietly. She wrapped her hands around Regina’s waist. “I just…don’t think I’m an attractive person to you…”

“Why’d you say something like that? I love every bit of you! I mean, your gentleness, your guitar skills, your face, your hair, your long hands…God I don’t know what I’m saying but I’m so addicted to you!” Regina rambled, before lowering her head and let out a hiccup. “I don’t think I can love anyone beside you…you’re the one…we’ll be just like them…”

Brianna’s heart leaped when she heard Regina’s confession, but the last part confused her. “Them?”

“Us in our dreams…the other Brianna May and Regina Taylor…” Regina nuzzled against Brianna’s neck again murmured to her ear. “I met them actually…”

She began to tell her experience of meeting the other Brianna and Regina. Despite Regina’s slurred speech due to drunkenness, Brianna listened to the blonde girl attentively and the story had her eyes wide open. As an astronomer, she had read about the concept of time-travelling many times, and never had she ever thought that it could happen so easily.

Maybe because it was not science after all. Maybe they were truly providentially destined.

“The other Regina…she had been right about everything. She had guided me to confess to you so I did…” Regina said dejectedly, eyes swollen as tears spilling from her eyes again. “I don’t know. Did I screw us up? Did you find me annoying? You never held my hand or kissed me-”

Not letting Regina finish, Brianna lurched forward and kissed Regina passionately on her lips. The soft lips against hers tasted salty because of the tears but Brianna paid no heed to it. The girl on her lap went frozen for a second before kissing her back with the same passion. Brianna opened her mouth and let Regina’s tongue slip in, holding the smaller girl close and tightening her embrace.

_She wanted everything of her. Everything of Regina Taylor._

Brianna melt into bliss and simply closed her eyes as Regina’s and her tongues met and probed each other. The kiss lasted for God knows how long before the two girls finally broke away from each other.

“That was the best kiss I’ve ever had.” Regina said between breaths and gave Brianna a loose smile.

“Me too.” Brianna smiled a bit shyly. She could still taste Regina in her mouth – alcohol, cigarettes…it felt addictive.

Cupping Regina’s hands in hers, Brianna sincerely stared into the other girl’s glimmering blue eyes. She said regretfully. “I’m sorry for making you feel insecure, Reg. We only met one week ago and you know, I’m slow to warm up so…I wasn’t able to initiate anything because I was simply too nervous.”

“The kiss just now told otherwise.” Regina giggled.

“That was because I really wanted you, alright?” Brianna planted a kiss on Regina’s cheek, pleased to see the blush on the other girl’s face. “I love you, Reg.”

“I love you too, Bri.” Regina pressed her body close to Brianna’s and gave her a tight hug. “We should go on a date. I can’t believe we’ve never done it even though we’re girlfriends.”

“Sure.” Brianna caressed Regina’s hair and replied softly. “We’re girlfriends after all.”

When Tim came back, Regina had already fallen asleep on her. With a doting smile, Brianna soothed the back of the sleeping girl whom she loved with all of her heart.

_“We’ll be just like them.”_

She would certainly make Regina’s dream come true.


End file.
